Technical Field
The present invention relates to control networks and more specifically to control networks leveraging RF communication standards such as near field communication standards and Bluetooth 4.0 standards.
Background Art
The ever-expanding reach of smart phones and tablets has recently extended to the building automation field. Smart phones and tablets are increasingly providing convenient and varied control options for residential and commercial buildings. Where there was once a myriad of remote controls or no remote control at all, there is now a single smart portable device running an “app”, such as a control application.
A couple such control applications are Crestron Mobile Pro® or Crestron Mobile® available from Crestron Electronics, Inc. of Rockleigh, N.J. With a control application, such as Crestron Mobile Pro®, a user may access a control network via a mobile network or wifi network thereby allowing for control of the various devices and control elements incorporated in the network from a smart portable device. For example, a user may now access a control network from his smart phone to turn off a bedroom light from another room in the home or even a location as remote as his office or across the globe while on vacation.
While the introduction of smart portable devices to building automation has had a positive impact, existing systems do not fully leverage the capabilities of current generation smart phones and tablets. One such capability is short range communication technologies such as near field communication (NFC) or Bluetooth 4.0.
NFC is a set of standards for short-range wireless communication technology that employs magnetic field induction to enable communication between electronic devices in close proximity. The technology allows an NFC-enabled device to communicate with another NFC-enabled device or to retrieve information from an NFC tag. This enables users to perform intuitive, safe, contactless transactions, access digital content and connect electronic devices simply by touching or bringing devices into close proximity.
NFC operates in the standard unlicensed 13.56 MHz frequency band over a range of around 2-4 cm and offers data rates in the range of at least 106 kbits/s to 424 kbit/s. NFC standards cover communication protocols and data exchange formats and are based on existing radio frequency identification (RFID) standards. The standards include ISO/IEC 18092 and those defined by the NFC Forum, a non-profit industry organization which promotes NFC and certifies device compliance.
There are two modes of operation covered by the NFC standards: active and passive. In active mode, both communicating devices are capable of transmitting data. Each device generates alternately generates and deactivates their own electromagnetic field to transmit and receive data.
In passive mode, only one device, the initiator devices, generates a electromagnetic field, while the target device, typically an NFC tag, modulates the electromagnetic field to transfer data. The NFC protocol specifies that the initiating device is responsible for generating the electromagnetic field. In this mode, the target device may draw its operating power from the initiator-provided electromagnetic field.
Bluetooth is a set of specifications for common short range wireless applications. They are written, tested & maintained by the Bluetooth SIG. Bluetooth 4.0 is the most recent version of Bluetooth wireless technology. Bluetooth 4.0 introduced low energy technology to the Bluetooth Core Specification, enabling devices that can operate for months or even years on coin-cell batteries.
Bluetooth 4.0 operates in the same spectrum range (2402-2480 MHz) as previous Bluetooth technology, but uses a different set of channels. Instead of Bluetooth technology's seventy-nine 1 MHz wide channels, Bluetooth 4.0 has forty 2 MHz wide channels. Additionally, Bluetooth low energy technology uses a different frequency hopping scheme than prior Bluetooth technology. These improvements make Bluetooth 4.0 ideally suited for discrete data transfer as opposed to streaming as in previous Bluetooth technologies.
There is now a need to fully leverage the short range communication capabilities of smart portable devices, such as smart phones and tablets, to provide more robust control systems.